“And I know I’m completely in the wrong here. I know you would never do anything untoward or invite advances. I’m so sorry. Please accept my apology.”
She did not move.
“Please turn around and look at Phin, darling.”
She did not move.
“We’re married, Caro. Each of us is going to make a mistake at one point or another. I’m sure it will be me most of the time. But we have to be able to sort these things out by talking to each other. Please talk to me. Say something. Tell me how angry you are. How hurt. Something.”
She did not move.
“Darling.”
He was getting nowhere with his words. He walked to her and put a hand on her waist.
“Tell me what I can say or do.” He stepped to the side so he could see her profile. There was no evidence of tears.
“Shall Phin hold you?”
She shook her head. He let his hand drop away from her.
“Do you want to strike me? I deserve it.”
Another small shake of the head.
“You must give me some hope, darling. I’m just going to stay here and talk to you until you do. You can’t escape me, you know. I’m sure I come off as the worst kind of ne’er-do-well, but I was a naval officer once upon a time and I can be persistent if it’s important, and I really can’t imagine anything more important than this.”
Lavinia whined and came around Caro’s legs to find Phineas’ hand.
“You’ve been so patient with me so far, darling. Please don’t give up on me.”
His wife cleared her throat. Thank God. She was going to say something to him.
She spoke three words to him and they cut into his heart like a bayonet.
“Go away. Pleathe.”
He went away.
She did not come down for dinner.
He did not go through the door to her room that night. He knew his best chance of communicating with her was in bed but he did not want to be rejected in that way in addition to the rejection of her stony silence. Not when coupling had, in many ways, been the best thing between them.
And he didn’t want to couple with her when she was upset at him. He wanted to make love to her and feel love coming back to him. He craved it. He felt it in his cock, his hands, his heart. But there would be no love-making with Caro tonight.
Therefore, he was surprised to be woken with her mouth on his, her hands on his chest, her naked body next to him. The room was dark. He put his arms around her and pulled her closer, pressing her breasts into him. Her hands went to his cock and her lips to his neck.
“Oh, Caro, darling,” he murmured in her ear as she stroked him and covered his neck in kisses. “You’ve forgiven me, you sweet thing, haven’t you? I knew you couldn’t stay angry at Phin for long.”
There was a momentary stilling of her hand on his cock and her lips on his neck.
Shit, what did I say wrong now?
Then, blessedly, she continued what she had been doing.
“Ungh, Caro.”
God, she got him so hard, so fast. And now she was climbing on top of him, straddling him, rubbing his cock against her cleft. He slid his hands from her back to her breasts, using his palms against her nipples. “Oh, darling, are you going to ride Phin? Just like you wanted to the first time?”
